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jueves, 8 de octubre de 2015

The first completely Spanish animated film

B-movie magic at full force

“Possessed”
illustrates the Spanish culture as a B horror movie that only missed having
Bruce Campbell on it. Animated films from the country are used to be considered
good just for trying like the little retard of the classroom. So I can assure
that Possessed isn’t one of those, but a legitimate hilarious movie even if it’s
not for everyone.

I
have to give thousands of blessings to SAM (Samuel Ortí Martí) for making a
clay-animated film instead of CGI. It has to be thanked not looking like most
of commercial movies nowadays. Spanish 3D movies like “Capture the flag” and “Copying
Up point by point but act like nobody noticed” (Tad, the lost explorer) stick
too much to the American formula like Pixar or DreamWorks, not developing an
identity of their own. On the other hand, this movie takes inspiration from
Aardman and reminds of web-original films like “Ghost Burger”.

The
easiest way of explaining this movie is a mix of tropes from Spanish pop
culture and horror B-movies. Don’t be confused by the trailer, it’s not just a
parody like “Scary Movie” or the dreadful “Spanish Movie”. Just as an example,
the first scene is a more creative archeological adventure than Tad.

It’s
an infernal pastiche that catches your morbidity with gags that go from visual
humor to wordplays which would probably be lost in translation. But the
unspoken gags take precedence, especially if you are a cult horror movies and
Lovecraftnian fan. From the mythical “Klaatu Barada Nikto” from “The day that
Earth stood still” to “Evil Dead” easter eggs and a cameo by Apu!

Spanish clay-animation on the map

“Possessed”
could actually be part of Cinemassacre’s “Monster Madness” and could made known
SAM if it received the attention it deserves. The movie had such a limited
release even in Spain that I had to watch it online. As soon as I get a DVD
copy, I will check the making of, which has to be exquisite.

The
movie hardly criticizes Spanish cultural deficit and the church. Its tone
reminds the first Torrente movie for “illustrating” the shit of the country. Even
Santiago Segura himself plays some characters while José Mota another, like
James Sullivan a Mike Wazowski in the Castilian “Monsters Inc.” dub.

Another
thing I would like to mention is the music, which has been so well selected
that made me tolerate the flamenco. Every track sticks to what is happening in
the film even if it’s not as obsessing as “Song of the Sea”. In conclusion, I
would love to thank SAM personally for this movie and hug him.